Government in Athens.

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2 Birthplace of DemocracyGreece is the birthplace of Democracy, a type of government in which people rule themselvesThe word democracy comes from Greek words meaning “rule of the people”

3 Rise of the AristocratsIn early Greece, kings ruled the city-state.Later, a group of rich landowners, or aristocrats took powerA government in which only a small group of people have power is called an oligarchy

4 Mo’ Money, Mo’ ProblemsWith the aristocrats controlling $ and now the government, the common people had little say in the government.In the 600s BC, a group of rebels tried to overthrow the aristocrats, but it didn’t work

5 160 swiftly, wreck it buy a new one…Since the rebellion failed a man named Draco created a new set of harsh laws for AthensThese laws were very harsh. Punishing minor crimes like loitering punishable by death.

6 Draco….outDraco’s laws were believed to be too harsh so a man named Solon created less harsh laws.Under Solon’s laws, all free men living in Athens became citizens: people who had the right to participate in government

7 Rise of TyrantsIn 546 a noble named Peisistratus overthrew the oligarchyPeisistratus became the leader of Athens and was called a tyrant.A tyrant is, a leader who held power through the use of force

8 Tyrant what, tyrant who?Today the word tyrant is harsh but in ancient Greece the word had a very different meaningTyrants in Athenian government were usually good leaders with strong armies and support from the people.Peisistratus brought peace and prosperity to the city starting new policies to unify the city, building temples and monuments.

9 Sippin Haterade After Peisistratus died, his son took over as tyrantAristocrats were unhappy because their power was goneThey convinced a rival city-state to attack Athens and re-claimed their power

10 Democracy is createdAround 500 BC a man named Cleisthenes gained power in Athens.Despite coming from a rich family he felt that, aristocrats had too much influenceWith the support of the people he overthrew the aristocracy and established the world’s first democracy

11 Democracy under CleisthenesAll citizens had the right to participate in the assembly, or gathering of citizens that created the city’s laws.The assembly met outdoors on a hillside so everyone could attend

12 Democracy Cont.During meetings, people stood before the crowd and gave speeches on political issues. They were actually encouraged to do so…After speeches were over the assembly voted usually by show of hands, but sometimes secret ballots

13 Voting The number of people who voted in assembly changed day to dayFor major decisions the assembly needed 6,000 people which wasn’t always easy to getRed rope attendance? What do you guess that is?

14 Too many PeopleWhat do you think would be a problem with having a 6,000 person assembly?Athenians selected citizens to be city officialsThese city officials decided which laws the assembly should discuss

15 Changes in Athenian DemocracyCitizens served on juries to decide court casesJuries had anywhere from 200 to 6,000 peopleWhy would you have an odd number of jurors?

16 Pericles Led the government from 460 BC-429 BCTo encourage people to participate in government he started to pay people who served in public offices or on juriesHe also encouraged the spread of democracy in Greece

17 Direct v. Representative DemocracyAll citizens in Athens could participate directly in governmentWhat this means is a person’s decision directly affects the outcome of a voteThe United States is too large for everyone to gather so we formed another kind of Democracy

18 Representative DemocracyThe democracy created by the United States is a representative democracy, or republicIn this system, citizens select officials to represent them in governmentElected officials then meet to make up and enforce the country’s laws